Pete Barton in Emmerdale – where he is now and his relationship with brother Ross
Pete was very busy during his years in Emmerdale
Pete Barton left Emmerdale in 2020 after 7 years in the village. But this week he gets a mention when Ross finds out his brother has been hurt.
So we thought it was a good time to have a look at Pete Barton’s years in Emmerdale and everything he got up to in the village.
Pete arrived in Emmerdale with his brother Finn and dad James, following his other brother Ross.
A love triangle for Pete Barton
He came into the village with a bang, straight into a love triangle with him, Ross and Debbie Dingle.
Pete and Debbie got engaged but the lead up to the wedding was full of drama! First, Charity gave birth to baby Moses in prison. And the baby’s dad was revealed to be Ross!
Furious with his brother for keeping this secret, Pete un-invited him to the wedding.
Then, on the wedding day itself, Ross set up a recording revealing that he had been sleeping with Debbie to be played.
Just as the truth was played to a shocked audience, a helicopter crashed into the village causing death and destruction!
Murder? Or not!
And in the middle of all that chaos, Pete and Ross came to blows. Pete landed a punch on his brother that floored him and he thought he was dead. He bundled Ross’s body into the boot of his car and left him in the woods. Then he told Debbie he had forgiven her, and that Ross had left Emmerdale.
When the police found a body, Pete was guilt-stricken. He confessed everything to a horrified Debbie – and later to his dad. But it turned out the body wasn’t Ross – he was still alive!
When Ross returned to the village, there was more beef between the brothers, but they eventually put it behind them after Pete got himself sent to prison.
Romance with Leyla, and Moira, and Priya!
On his release, he started a romance with Leyla Harding. But after the drama of his dad’s death, Pete began a secret relationship with his aunt, Moira.
He moved in with Leyla, despite cheating with Moira, and then – as if two women weren’t enough, he slept with Priya Kotecha too!
In his guilt, Pete somehow ended up proposing to Leyla and they planned a wedding. But when the big day dawned, he had cold feet.
Pete tried to escape the ceremony out of a window, only to see Leyla doing the same! They agreed they were better off not marrying and called things off. Pete, though, slept with Priya on the wedding night.
In October 2017, there was huge drama as Emma Barton – Pete’s mum – shot his brother Finn and killed him, then later died herself when Moira shoved her off the viaduct. And in the middle of all that Moira gave birth having had no idea she was expecting a baby!
For a while Moira thought baby Isaac could be Pete’s son, but a DNA test revealed he was Cain’s.
Pete Barton and his exit from Emmerdale
Pete fell into depression which got worse when Adam Barton – his half brother – confessed to killing Emma and went on the run.
Moira admitted she was the killer and Adam was protecting her. Ross and Pete agreed to keep quiet but their relationship with Moira never really recovered.
Pete later started a romance with Rhona. Their relationship hit the rocks, though, when Pete injured Rhona accidentally and she had a hysterectomy. The pair eventually split. Then Pete became close to Tracy Metcalfe, helping her clear her dad’s name after his death.
He stumbled on the truth about Moira and Nate Robinson, though for a while Cain believed it was Pete who was having an affair with Moira (again!) .
Things were proving difficult for Pete so he decided to leave Emmerdale for Liverpool, where Ross had moved with his girlfriend Rebecca and her son Seb.
And that’s where he still is – as far as we know!
Anthony Quinlan played Pete Barton in Emmerdale for 7 years. He was already a familiar face to soap fans having played Gilly Roach in Hollyoaks.
Gilly was quite a comic character when he first appeared in Hollyoaks. But he took a darker turn during Anthony’s stint on the show when Gilly was accused of raping Jacqui McQueen. In a dramatic episode, Gilly confessed he knew Jacqui hadn’t consented.
Life after Hollyoaks
After he left Hollyoaks, Anthony appeared in Doctors, and then he landed the role of Pete Barton in Emmerdale.
Though it’s five years since he said goodbye to the Dales he’s not ruling out a return.
“It’s s one of those things you never say never, you know?” he said. “So, who knows! Who knows what the future holds!”
Romance for Anthony Quinlan
Anthony was in a relationship with Strictly Come Dancing professional Dianne Buswell from 2017 until 2018.
Now he’s totally loved-up with fellow soapy Nikki Sanderson.
In a gushy social media post on Valentine’s Day, Anthony called her his “best mate” and “number one supporter”, adding “I love making memories and living life with you by my side”. Aww!
Nikki played Candice in Coronation Street and now stars as Maxine Minniver in Hollyoaks, though she recently shocked fans when she announced she was leaving the soap.
The pair share a house, and they’re both fitness fans, often sharing pictures of their workouts on social media.
And Anthony has his own business selling fitness supplements.
View this post on Instagram
Holiday romance
He and Nikki recently returned from soaking up the sun in Cyprus and shared snaps from their holiday on social media.
“Spent a week living our best lives,” he wrote on a post on Instagram. “Eating, relaxing, and pretending we don’t have responsibilities. Fully recharged but want to go back!”
According to IMDB, Anthony will soon be appearing in a film called Down In The Deep Water, which is in production currently.
Sounds interesting!
Emmerdale usually airs weeknights on ITV at 7.30pm, with an early release on ITVX at 7am.
Classic Emmerdale usually airs every weekday on ITV3 at 6am and 6.30am, plus 1.40pm and 2.10pm.
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